Falling in Love Comes Second
by BetaRayThorse
Summary: The words, "Those cards are dumb" have been with Reiji since birth. They're the first words his soulmate will say to him. When he hears them, he's disappointed. [AU] {Redlightshipping} Shingo/Reiji


AN:Because soulmate aus are my weakness and clearly these two have something going on between them. I really enjoyed playing with the concept, especially with the social effects of such a world.

* * *

Reiji was born with the words _Those cards are dumb _written on his right leg. They stretched from his upper thigh to the top of his knee in a straight line.

They were the first words his soulmate would say to him. Like all children, he grew up knowing that. It was common knowledge. Guessing about them was like a game. Children would huddle together in groups to show off their soulmarks to their close friends and exchange guesses as to their context and who they belonged to. In his youth, Reiji hadn't been an exception.

Reiji wondered, what cards was he talking about? He assumed he meant Duel Monsters. Even at a young age, Reiji was invested in the game, but that still left too many possibilities for his liking. Were these cards his soulmate received as a gift and vocally voiced his or her opinion about? Were Reiji and whoever this mysterious person was talking about newly released cards? Maybe his soulmate hated Duel Monsters. Maybe, and this thought especially bothered him, his soulmate was talking about Reiji's own cards.

Ridiculous.

His mother never let him see her soulmark, but he knew where it was. The words ran across her shoulders, right below her neck. He had caught a glimpse of it one day when her shirt slipped down slightly in the back. She had quickly pulled it up before Reiji could fully read the words, but he did manage to catch the word _dimensions_.

His younger brother's soulmark was around his ankle. They were common words: _How can I help you?_ He felt pity for Reira. He would have a hard time finding his destined, and many times he would hear those words and think he had only to see that their soulmark didn't match his own words.

Reiji met his soulmate in a card shop, which he found fitting. He sat at a table with his cards spread out in front of him and thinking of new ways to play them. A kid with blond and brown hair and a scarf around his neck walked over to him. He looked to be a grade or two below Reiji, close to the start of his teenage years.

He took one gaze the laid out cards and said, "Those cards are dumb."

Reiji's heart skipped a beat.

"Really," the kid continued in a taunting tone, "there are much better ways to summon without paying such a ridiculous cost. _I _know of several, and if you ask-"

Dread and anger mixed with his surprise. They won over his shock.

"Excuse me? These cards are perfectly good."

The kid's eyes widened. He jumped back and pointed at Reiji.

"You! You're-You're my soulmate!" He yelled.

That drew the attention of the other customers in the shop. The two children became the center of their attention. One woman whispered to the person next to her how lucky they were to meet so young. When soulmates could meet anywhere, it was common to witness people meeting their destined for the first time. It was always an interesting sight. Reiji paid little attention to them, though the other kid's face turned red.

"What is your soulmark?" Reiji asked.

He quickly evaluated the kid. He seemed to lack manners, but Reiji hoped this first impression was a wrong one. He was a Duelist, but going by his hasty and incorrect judgment about Reiji's own cards, he was either a new one or lacked skill. He was cocky, too. Shockingly enough, Reiji felt nothing with him. It was not love at first sight. He found him neither attractive nor ugly. He had expected his heart to pound and just _know _that the other was perfect for him when they met, but if he felt anything, it was annoyance.

The blond kid pulled off his scarf. The words _Excuse me? These are perfectly good cards_ were written around the middle of his neck like a collar. They stretched around to form a circle.

"See? Soulmates," the boy repeated.

So they were. Reiji reached out to touch his neck, stopping a few inches before doing so. The blond shut his eyes and held his breath. The neck was such a public place for a soulmark. Reiji was sure it must be hard to have information so private in a place everyone could see. He considered himself lucky his own soulmark was almost always covered up.

"What's your name? I am Reiji Akaba."

"Shingo Sawatari."

* * *

Reiji rewound the video. Yuya reappeared on the screen. Shingo came on shortly after. Then cards were played and materialized. By now, Reiji had memorized every action and gesture in the duel.

"I use my Scale One Astromancy Magician and my Scale Eight Chronomancy Magician to see the Pendulum Sale! Thus, monsters between Level Two and Seven can be Summoned at the same time!" the recorded Yuya explained.

Pendulum Summoning. A new way of Summoning that Reiji planned to master.

Shingo Sawatari appeared on screen once more. A choker hid his soulmark. When it grew colder, Shingo would swap it for a scarf. He taunted Yuya and praised himself in the same breath.

Some days, Reiji had a hard time believing this was his soulmate. It had been a few years since they met, and Shingo still did not feel like his destined, emotionally at least. When they boys had announced to their family that they had found their soulmates, they were overjoyed. They couldn't have picked a better match themselves, as some families were known to do when a marriage meant more than just love. Their families went out of their way to make sure the boys spent time with each other and often talked about marriage plans. They were always together at holidays and birthdays. Family trips would be taken together.

The duel ended. Reiji pulled up another video of Yuya dueling. There was a thud as a heavy weight landed on his desk

"Reiji," a familiar voice called.

The named Duelist glanced at the speaker out of the corner of his eyes.

"What do you want, Shingo?"

"Duel me."

Now Reiji turned to face him. Shingo wore no choker or scarf to hid the ring of words around his neck, Reiji's words. Shingo never felt the need to hide his soulmark around his destined.

It always amused Reiji to see how differently Shingo acted around others compared to him. The younger Duelist dropped his guard with him. He didn't put on a grand, flamboyant persona or needlessly throw out insults. He said whatever came into his mind without polishing the thought up first, and from Shingo, that meant a lot.

They were comfortable around each other, as Reiji assumed soulmates should be, thought he could still count the number of times they had kissed on one hand. They had kissed once out of curiosity and once more to appease their parents on one Christmas Eve.

Finding your soulmate didn't guarantee love at first sight, especially when the destined met at a young age like they had. All it meant was if you were going to fall in love, your soulmate would be the best possible person to fall in love with, and they were a person you could never truly hate. It sometimes took decades for the love to form, but when it finally bloomed, the bond was the sweetest, purest love a person could ask for.

Or so they said. Reiji knew people who only got to meet their soulmate once and never felt a strong pull. Others would confess that though they loved their soulmate, the relationship was not what it was made out to be. Still, there were people who felt their life would be empty without their soulmate even a minute after meeting them.

Reiji wondered where he would fall on the spectrum. He pushed up his glasses.

"What's the occasion?" the CEO asked.

Shingo smirked. "Do I need to have a reason to spend time with my soulmate?"

"No, but you usually do."

He knew Shingo better than the blond knew himself, maybe even better than Reiji knew himself.

"Fair enough. I'm working on a new deck." He frowned. "I need to make a new, better one."

Especially after losing to Yuya, Reiji thought. He had more videos to watch and analyze, but if his soulmate wanted to better himself, Reiji was happy to help.

"What about Kakimoto?" Reiji asked.

"You're a better Duelist. If I can win against you, I can win against anyone."

Despite years of dueling against each other, Shingo had yet to win once. Reiji nodded and stood.

"Very well. I have some cards you might like to-"

"Why are you watching that Sakaki?" Shingo interrupted him to ask, jealousy thick in his voice.

Even though they were soulmates, destined for each other, Shingo would show jealously when someone stole Reiji's attention away from himself. Shingo craved attention like an alcoholic craved beer. Reiji knew this, and he tried to show extra affection to the boy else he take it out on some poor person weaker than him.

"Analysis, as you should know by now."

Shingo's frown grew. "He's not that great." A lie. Reiji knew Shingo thought highly of Yuya. "If you need to know anything about Pendulum Summoning, **I **can tell you. I Pendulum Summoned too, you know." Such jealousy. It was almost endearing. "Anyway, let's go."

He hopped off the desk. He grabbed Reiji's hand and pulled him away.

* * *

They dueled and dueled and dueled. Reiji grew bored after the fifth match, but since Shingo was trying to improve himself, he refrained from voicing his complaint. He was proud of his soulmate. The feeling was a pleasant change from than usual one. Shingo had lost every match so far, but that was more because of Reiji's great skill than Shingo's lack of his own. He fought well. The blond was determined to win at least one before they called it a night.

It made his heart flutter.

Currently Shingo laid on the floor trying to catch his breath. Reiji crouched beside him. Unlike the younger boy, his breathing was calm and even.

"We can stop today and resume tomorrow, if you like," Reiji suggested. He didn't want the poor boy to pass out from exhaustion.

Shingo shook his head.

"No, just... give me a... moment to catch my... breath and we can go again."

"Very well." He stood. "What made you suddenly want to improve?"

He knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it from Shingo's own lips. It would help motivate him.

"That damn Sakaki!" Shingo growled. "I have to beat him when the tournament comes around."

He would have to thank Yuya next time he saw him. Shingo had changed since the two had met, and Reiji liked it. He didn't bully others as much, and instead of surrendering to defeat, he was trying to better himself.

Shingo spoke again, this time softly and quietly. "Besides, our families are going to announce we're soulmate to the public soon, right?" He rubbed the words on his neck. "I want to be a Duelist you can be proud of."

Reiji hadn't expected himself to be Shingo's motivation, but he enjoyed the thought. It made him feel warm inside, and it made him want to be stronger for Shingo, too.

"Then get up." Reiji ordered.

Shingo grinned. With a grunt, he jumped to his feet.

"Your strategy leaves you open on your opponent's turn. You need to focus more on your defense," Reiji advised.

"Got it."

When they next spoke, it was unison.

"Duel!"

* * *

They practiced until nightfall. Shingo sat down on the couch while Reiji typed away on his computer. The blond had said he wanted to relax before going home. Reiji stopped his keying when he thought he heard snoring, and his soulmate was indeed fast asleep. Their dueling had taken all his energy.

Reiji didn't worry over the situation. It wouldn't be the first time Shingo fell asleep with him instead of returning home. He left the room to retrieve a blanket, which he covered Shingo with. The blond Duelist grabbed onto the soft fabric.

The older boy wondered, had Shingo always been as beautiful as he had been today? This was a Shingo he could proudly call his. He watched the rise and fall of his breaths, memorized by them. Gently, he reached out and touched the soulmark on his neck. Shingo moaned softly in his sleep.

As he brought his hands higher to his cheek and brushed his lips with his thumb, Shingo's eyes slowly opened and locked with his own. His gaze made what felt like electricity run through his body.

He softly kissed him. Shingo smiled against his lips.

"You know, if you wanted a kiss, you only had to ask," Shingo said smugly.

"Go back to sleep, Shingo," Reiji responded affectionately.

"Hold my hand?"

Reiji answered his question by doing so. Now content, Shingo closed his eyes once more.

Better to fall in love late than never, Reiji reasoned.

Six months later, Reiji was head over heels for Shingo, and the two were inseparable. He felt like something would be missing if Shingo wasn't in his life.


End file.
